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A top Moscow military expert then mocked the 'tiny' Royal Navy, which has been tasked with tracking the threat.

Britain has been without an aircraft carrier since HMS Illustrious was scrapped in 2014 but will be commissioning the £3.1bn HMS Queen Elizabeth in May 2017 (https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/119838...dy-for-action/). The hi-tech carrier is 280m long and weighs over 70,000 tonnes, eclipsing the 43,000 tonne Kuznetsov.

And insiders in Moscow's military circles say it marks a first step towards Russia asserting its dominance in the Mediterranean.

Defence expert for Russian news agency RIA, Alexander Khrolenko, said:[B] "While the North Atlantic bloc is stalling in the sands of the Middle East, the Russian Navy seizes control over the Atlantic, not to mention the Mediterranean and Black Seas."[/b]

The fearsome Northern Fleet is led by nuclear aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and battle cruiser Peter the Great.

Russian navy flagship and nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov is leading a group of eight vessels towards the Syria port of Tartus

The ships are expected to pass through the English Channel, prompting the Royal Navy to prepare to scramble ships

The fearsome fleet is even expected to conduct naval drills off the coast of Scotland during the journey towards the Mediterranean

The former is expected to provide more Russian jets to the bombing campaign aimed at anti-Assad fighters in the city of Aleppo.

And Khrolenko warned their presence in the Med will tip the naval balance of power away from Nato nations, adding: "They have no equal in the Mediterranean."

"The pilots need to be certified for carrier take-offs and landings at day and night before it takes up station in the Mediterranean.

"They are free to do this in international waters, but once they are in the English Channel, the aircraft will be grounded."

Destroyer HMS Duncan is expected to tail the Russian fleet as it passes through the North Sea and English Channel

She is likely to be accompanied by frigate HMS Richmond, shadowing the eight-vessel convoy down to the Straits of Gibraltar

Admiral Kuznetsov's Sukhoi SU-27-K fighter jets are currently carrying out practice sorties in the sea off the Orkney Isles

Images emerged yesterday of the ships sailing past the Norwegian city of Trondheim towards the North Sea, where they are expected to pick up an escort from the Royal Navy (https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/royal-navy/).

The frigate HMS Richmond and destroyer HMS Duncan will likely shadow the Russian fleet to the Straits of Gibraltar.

But dismissive Khrolenko poured scorn on "what little remains of the Royal Navy".